Semen is comprised of sperm suspended in a fluid phase called seminal plasma. Semen analysis is the major step to determine the fertility status of a male patient or a sperm donor and involves counting spermatozoa with a microscope and examining their motility and morphology. Semen analyses are usually performed on ejaculates collected in a condom during coitus or by masturbation into a tube, bottle, or onto a plate. Freshly ejaculated human semen is a heterogeneous mixture consisting principally of fluids from prostate (approximately 20-30%), epididymis (approximately 10-15%), as well as the seminal vesicles (approximately 60-75%). The epididymal fraction contains the sperm. The seminal vesicles secrete a fluid that forms a soft coagulum in which spermatozoa are entrapped. Following ejaculation this clot undergoes liquefaction over a time course of approximately 20 minutes at approximately room temperature by the action of PSA (P30), a proteolytic enzyme originating in the prostate gland.
Collection and donation of semen is achieved by a variety of methods, each of which may have some drawbacks. Semen collection by masturbation using a condom is considered by some donors to be unesthetic or difficult. In other instances coitus with a partner might not be an option for semen collection. Furthermore, recovery of semen from a condom following ejaculation is always incomplete due to loss of un-liquefied semen over the skin of penis as well as on the inner wall of the condom. The lack of complete recovery by this procedure may result in inconsistent semen evaluation. On the other hand semen collection by masturbation without condom directly into a tube, bottle or in a container may result in loss of sperm rich fractions primarily because human semen is ejaculated in split fractions associated with the orgasmic contractions. The initial portion of the ejaculate contains the sperm rich fraction originating in the epididymis along with secretions from Cowper's gland and prostate, followed by a mixture of prostatic and seminal vesicle secretions and finally the ejaculation wave culminates with the seminal vesicular coagulum. See Marmar, J. L., Praiss, D. E. and Debenedictis, T. J., “Statistical Comparison of the Parameters of Semen Analysis of Whole Semen Versus the Fractions of the Split Ejaculate,” Fertility & Sterility, 30(4):439-443, 1978 October, of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. See Adoni, A. and Palti, Z., “Better Postcoital Test for Oligospermic Patients Using Split Ejaculate Artificial Insemination,” Fertility & Sterility, 31(5):587-588, 1979 May, of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. See Propping, D., Katzorke, T. and Tauber, P. F., “Further Evaluation of the Split Ejaculate for Artificial Insemination,” European J. of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Biology, 11(6):385-394, 1981 May, of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. See Schill, W. B. and Littich, M., “Split Ejaculate Insemination With and Without the Addition of Kallikrein,” Andrologia, 13(2):121-126, 1981 March-April, of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. See Sokol, R. Z., Madding, C. I., Handelsman, D. J. and Swerdloff, R. S., “The Split Ejaculate: Assessment of Fertility Potential Using Two in Vitro Test Systems,” Andrologia, 18(4):380-386, 1986 July-August, of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
Some of the embodiments of the present invention provide, among other things, a method and device to recover ejaculated semen completely, to prevent the loss of initial sperm rich epididymal fractions, to avoid the use of a condom for masturbation, to eliminate the multi-step transfers of semen following ejaculation that are common with current methods, and to provide a single device that contains a collecting chamber, a storage and measuring reservoir, and a vertical stand in one preformed module. The various embodiments of the present invention semen collection system and method will have multiple uses in a variety of contexts including, but not limited thereto: in the diagnosis of infertility, in semen donation, artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization (IVF)/intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) clinics, hospitals and laboratories and will be included in kits intended for over-the-counter sperm testing devices such as SPERMCHECK.